A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 738 The emperor is angry

Li Shimin looked at the report from the hundred cavalrymen.
His eyes revealed a murderous intent.

"Li Yizong is lawless!"

The emperor immediately summoned the heads of the three departments and also the prime ministers.

Looking at the report from the hundred riders handed down by the emperor, Li Yi could only say that those who commit evil deeds deserve no mercy.

"The Hundred Cavalry have thoroughly investigated the matter, and the witnesses and physical evidence have been confirmed. The evidence is irrefutable. Li Yizong has now been imprisoned in the Dali Temple."
What do you suggest we do?

Dali Minister Quan Hongshou glanced at Li Yi first. Li Yi was originally the great-grandson of Li Jing, the Duke of Hua during the Sui Dynasty, but had long been adopted by the deceased younger brother of Prince Yi'an, Li Xiaochang.
Therefore, Yizong was Li Yi's cousin.

Li Yi felt several gazes directed at him and said, "Your Majesty, now that the evidence is conclusive, let us proceed according to the law."
"I am a cousin of Li Yizong, and I request to recuse myself from this case."

He couldn't help with this matter even if he wanted to. Besides, Li Yizong was so audacious and arrogant that helping him this time would only cause even greater trouble next time. There was no need to help such a suicidal person, lest he get himself into trouble.

It's best to stay far away.

The emperor's face was ashen.

"I trust you will not bend the law for personal gain, so there is no need for you to recuse yourself."

"Minister of Justice, what should be done with Li Yizong?"

Quan Hongshou said, "Li Yizong has committed robbery and deserves to be executed!"

According to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, robbery and murder was not an independent crime, but rather an aggravated circumstance of four other crimes: treason, prison break, human trafficking, and banditry.

Robbery and murder, along with bandits, constitute robbery.

The Tang Code included a special section on theft and robbery, which defined theft as stealing by hiding one's identity and theft as robbery, and robbery as taking property by force or power.

When imposing penalties, there are different scenarios such as theft followed by robbery, or robbery followed by theft, as well as the quantity of stolen goods.

The Dali Minister convicted Li Yizong of robbery because the investigation revealed that Wang Ren, the magistrate of Wannian County, and his party of seven were chased and attacked by Li Yizong on their way back to Chang'an. Li Yizong shot and killed the seven men with arrows. Afterwards, Li Yizong not only let his hunting dogs tear apart the corpses, but also stole the valuables they were carrying, as well as the donkeys and horses they were riding.

He believed this was consistent with robbery and murder, and therefore it should be classified as robbery. Since seven people were killed, the crime was extremely heinous and should be executed immediately.

Li Shimin was dissatisfied.
“Li Yizong did not rob property; he deliberately robbed and killed someone because he opposed the county officials’ assessment of his hidden land. It was murder.”

The Tang Code categorized homicide into six types: murder, intentional homicide, homicide in a fight, accidental homicide, homicide in jest, and negligent homicide.

Li Yizong's abduction and murder of Wang Ren was a premeditated killing.

Murder was punished according to the outcome: attempted murder, completed murder resulting in injury, or completed murder resulting in death, with the punishments being three years of penal servitude, hanging, or beheading, respectively.

Li Shimin believed that Li Yizong's actions constituted murder and should be punished by execution.

Moreover, the victims were government officials, and seven more people were killed, so the punishment should be increased by one degree.

The newly appointed Minister of Justice, Duan Lun, is the emperor's brother-in-law. He once served as governor of Shu (Sichuan). He is the son of the former Minister of War and has a handsome, long beard.
He believed that Li Yizong's actions were not a simple robbery and murder, but should also be investigated for crimes such as possessing prohibited weapons and illegally amassing troops.
They also need to investigate his father, Prince Yi'an, Li Xiaochang.

To secretly possess armor, spears, bows, and crossbows, to secretly raise assassins, and to defy imperial orders and kill officials—this is an act of rebellion!

As soon as the bearded prince consort uttered these words,
The atmosphere in the hall became heavy.

What was originally just Li Yizong's audacious killing of a Wannian County official has now escalated to the claim that the Prince of Yi'an and his son are plotting a rebellion.

"Your Majesty, I request that an envoy be dispatched immediately to investigate the case thoroughly."

The emperor twisted his beard,

He did not speak immediately.

Duan Lun intends to imprison and interrogate Li Xiaochang. Once this process begins, things will get very serious.

The emperor had to consider the consequences.

Although Li Xiaochang, the Prince of Yi'an, was not from the main branch of the royal family, but a distant branch affiliated with the Imperial Clan Court, he was the grandson of Li Jing. His father, Li Yuantong, was an illegitimate child born from an affair between Li Jing and a maid in Yang Zhong's household, a child he did not acknowledge.

Back then, Li Yuantong was a servant in the household of Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, and became a steward because of his capable work. Li Yuan lost his father at a young age and was taken in and raised by his aunt, Lady Dugu, and his uncle, Yang Jian, and received a lot of help from Li Yuantong.

When Li Yuan raised an army and marched south at the end of the Sui Dynasty, Li Xiaochang, the son of Li Yuantong, donated Yongfeng Granary, one of the six major granaries in the country, to help the rebel army which was short of food at the time. This greatly helped Li Yuan enter Guanzhong and capture Chang'an.

Therefore, after the founding of the country, Li Xiaochang was enfeoffed as the Prince of Yi'an, registered as the Imperial Clan Official, and became a member of the royal family.

His seven sons were all granted the title of Duke by Li Yuan.

For the past few years, Li Xiaochang has also served as the governor of Lizhou, overseeing the military affairs of six prefectures including Lilongshijing.

Such a minister,

Li Shimin certainly couldn't just imprison someone or interrogate them at will.

Besides,

Li Yi is also the adopted son of Li Xiaochang's younger brother, so this aspect still needs to be considered.

Previously, the titles of princes of the imperial clan were greatly reduced, but eighteen princes were retained. Li Xiaochang was one of them, and he was one of the three princes who were not direct descendants of the imperial clan.

After thinking for a while,
Li Shimin gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "This matter has been thoroughly investigated. It was Li Yizong who acted recklessly, and it has nothing to do with Prince Yi'an."

In this case, Li Yizong was convicted of robbery and sentenced to immediate execution and public execution, in accordance with the judgment of the Dali Minister.

His wives and concubines were taken into the inner palace, and all his land, houses, and slaves were confiscated.

"Those who participated in the robbery that day, all of them shall be cut in half at the waist and their bodies displayed in the marketplace!"

"Prince Li Xiaochang of Yi'an has failed in his duty to educate his son. He is hereby dismissed from his post as Governor of Lizhou and ordered to stay at home to reflect on his actions!"

Li Shimin ultimately did not pursue the matter too much with Li Xiaochang, but merely dismissed him from his post as governor of Lizhou. His title of Prince of Yi'an, as well as his honorary titles of Grand Pillar of State and Grand Master of the Palace, remained unchanged.

They didn't imprison or interrogate him.

Li Yi remained silent after hearing the emperor's verdict. Whether it was robbery or murder, killing seven people, or the death of a county official, none could escape death. But the emperor did not follow Duan Lun's wishes to accuse the matter of treason, thus protecting Li Xiaochang's entire family.

of course,

This way, Li Yi won't be implicated.

After all, although Li Yi and Li Xiaochang were not close, he was the adopted son of Li Xiaochang's younger brother. According to the patriarchal system, he and Li Xiaochang were very close, like uncle and nephew.

If Li Xiaochang is indeed found guilty of treason, Li Yi will inevitably be implicated and affected to some extent.

Li Yizong's robbery crime will not implicate too many people.

Stepping out of the main hall,

I took a breath of fresh air.

Li Yi couldn't understand what Li Yizong was thinking. He'd heard that the kid was a bit of a playboy, who loved hunting, playing polo, and indulging in a life of pleasure. If you have the means, go ahead and enjoy it, but don't court disaster.

You can afford to raise a gyrfalcon for fifty taels of gold.

You are unwilling to pay the grain allowance of two liters of millet per mu for the public granary.

To hide a few hundred acres of land, and to pay ten or so fewer bushels of grain a year, you actually dared to rob and kill a government official!

Even if it's just a minor official in a county outside the capital, he's still an official.

Besides, he is the nephew of Wannian Ling and a member of the Wang family of Taiyuan.

It was also at a crucial juncture when the emperor was about to implement new policies.
Who can save someone so audacious and reckless?

Even if your father is the Prince of Yi'an, or even the retired Emperor Li Yuan, you're still walking into the line of fire. You can't even save yourself.

The autumn wind, carrying a chill, crept into my clothes.

Li Yi felt that
It's better that a cousin like Li Yizong is dead, to avoid causing trouble.

The emperor's new policies faced tremendous resistance, and Li Yizong's act of jumping out to seek death gave the emperor an opportunity to establish his authority through killing.

idiot!

Li Yizong handed the emperor the sharpest knife, then stretched his neck and leaned towards it.

An old man hanged himself, tired of living.

Lighting a lamp in a latrine is suicidal.

Should they be cut in half and abandoned in the marketplace, or beheaded immediately?

Without any delay,
They were taken directly to Gouji Ridge in Dongshi and executed, without even a night's rest.

Li Yi felt somewhat tired.
Today, the emperor is intentionally protecting him; otherwise, if someone were to make a fuss about Li Yizong, Li Yi, being a cousin of Li Yizong who shared the same grandfather, would certainly not escape being implicated.

After quickly tidying up his room at the government office, Li Yi finished his shift and went home.

I had just arrived at my doorstep, and the car hadn't even come to a complete stop,
Then someone rushed over.
"Brother, save my eldest brother!"

Li Yi looked up and saw his cousin Li Yiyu, the sixth son of Li Xiaochang's family, who was also his brother-in-law. He and Ji Lingyi's younger sister, Ji Zongchi, had been engaged since childhood under the arrangement of their elders.

That marriage was arranged by Ji Lingyi's grandfather, Ji Wei, and Li Yiyu's grandfather, Li Yuantong.

Because of this relationship, Li Yi was only close to this cousin from the Prince of Yi'an's mansion.

Li Yiyu is currently holding the official position of Left Imperial Guard of the Crown Prince. This autumn, he will officially marry Ji Lingyi's younger sister, Ji Zongchi, who is only thirteen years old.

"Brother, you must save my eldest brother!"

"He was drunk and confused for a moment."

Li Xiaochang was dismissed from his post by the emperor and ordered to stay home to reflect on his actions, forbidden from leaving the house. He then sent Liu Lang, who was on good terms with Li Yi, to plead with Li Yi.
He even brought his young wife, Ji Zongchi, along.

Li Yiyu was extremely anxious, even to the point of tears. He was so anxious that he was incoherent and his hands and feet were ice-cold.

Li Yi hadn't expected the brothers to be so affectionate, but he could only let out a long sigh.

"How can this be excused by being drunk and confused? Seven lives! And these are county officials and constables, and the victims are from five different families."

What's more, he killed someone, then unleashed dogs to tear the corpse apart, and finally dumped the body in a ditch to feed the wolves. Do you know how heinous that is?
The incident stemmed from a county official's survey of land, instructing him to pay grain to the public granary.

As you know, this is a new policy recently issued by the imperial court. His lawless behavior almost implicated my uncle and me.
You almost didn't escape this calamity either.
Now that the sage has shown leniency, only pursuing the matter against him and not implicating us, this is already an act of boundless grace from Heaven.

The young Li Yiyu pleaded earnestly, "My father said that as long as His Majesty is willing to spare my elder brother's life, he is willing to offer up ten thousand acres of fertile land and a thousand taels of gold. He would even exile my brother three thousand miles away if he were spared."

I beg my elder brother, for the sake of our shared bloodline, to spare his life.

"Sixth Brother, Emperor Yizong killed an official and defied the imperial decree. Do you know how heinous that is? Do you know that today in court, someone said that he secretly possessed crossbows and was raising warriors? Do you know what that means?"

Killing officials and defying imperial orders is tantamount to treason.

Now the emperor only convicts him of robbery.

That's because they didn't want to delve deeper into the matter.

"Sixth Brother, if we want to protect the family, we have no choice but to sacrifice the pawn to save the king. The sooner this matter is resolved, the better; we must not let it drag on any longer."

"Go back quickly and prepare some wine and food so that Yoshimune can have one last farewell drink. After the execution, quickly collect his body and bury him."

Li Yiyu stood there stunned, muttering, "Is there really no way to save him?"

"Go quickly, the execution will take place tonight."

(End of this chapter)